Lazy Pear Pie Gets Fancy

Two weeks ago as I was getting psyched for
a trip to Ravinia with some friends, I started to think about what I should contribute to our picnic. As I was sorting--no, not sorting, make that "looking through" and thinking about sorting--some recipes a few days earlier, I had seen one called "Heirloom Pear Hand Pie". Though chocolate is de rigueur for an all-girls outing, I've been trying to avoid dairy lately. Therefore, the pear pie seemed like a possibly acceptable substitute. And the "hand" part; how perfect for al fresco dining, right?

Well. As Friday afternoon drew nigh, I still hadn't found the recipe or made the pie, and when I finally did start looking for it, it was nowhere, though I really did see it a couple days before. I did. Without it, I'd have to change my plan. But I didn't want to change it drastically or I'd have to run to the market for ingredients.

So I grabbed some frozen puff pastry dough out of the freezer and started defrosting it in the microwave. While that was working, I peeled, cored and diced three Bartlett pears. Then, since I had three peaches that were right on the edge, I did the same to them. I tossed the fruit with 1/4 cup sugar and 1/4 flour and a dash of cinnamon. Next, I threw in some dried cranberries just because they were on the counter. The defrosted dough was ready for rolling. I tried to roll it and then form something resembling a hand pie, but the filling was too copious and runny and the dough was too slippery. Plan B: bake the pies in a bunch of round Pyrex dishes and a random square mini-casserole, then fit said containers with lids for safe transport to the grounds.

Phew. That's what I did. And look how it turned out! Pretty good for an off the cuff attempt, if I do say so myself. I do choose to say so, just because I'm usually pretty unadventurous when it comes to following recipes. I just follow. This time, my Lazy Pear Pie and I took the road less taken, and it was a tasty one (but not as much the next day, this is a pie better baked and eaten on the same day)!